Stock Market & Financial Investment News

On The Fly: Midday WrapStocks on Wall Street were lower at midday as negotiations in Washington to avert automatic spending cuts and tax hikes by the end of the year continue to dominate the headlines and move the market. With President Obama speaking at an event at midday and House Speaker Boehner scheduling a press conference for this afternoon, the volatility that has dominated recent days is likely to continue... ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., consumer spending fell 0.2% in October, versus expectations for a flat reading. Incomes were unchanged last month, versus expectations of a 0.2% gain. The Chicago PMI reading for November came in at 50.4, about in-line with forecasts for a 50.5 reading and indicating expansion after being below 50 last month. In Europe, the annual rate of consumer price growth in the shared currency nations fell to 2.2% in November from 2.5% in October, while unemployment in the euro zone rose to 11.7% from 11.6% in September. Also, German lawmakers approved the new aid deal struck for Greece. In Asia, Japanese industrial production unexpectedly rose 1.8% while unemployment came in as expected at 4.2%... COMPANY NEWS: Facebook (FB) and Zynga (ZNGA) disclosed that they have changed the terms of their partnership, meaning Facebook will now be able to develop its own games and Zynga won't have to use Facebook ad units or payments on its outside sites. Zynga shares fell 8% after the changes were publicized... Yum! Brands (YUM) provided guidance, including a softer outlook on China, and was downgraded by at least three firms. Shares fell over 9% following the announcement and the corresponding analyst notes... Several more companies announced special one-time dividends, including Whole Foods (WFM), Tellabs (TLAB), Enzon Pharmaceuticals (ENZN), National Beverage (FIZZ) and Regal Entertainment (RGC)... MAJOR MOVERS: Among the notable gainers were Christoper & Banks (CBK), up 23%, and Five Below (FIVE), up 15% following their quarterly reports. Among the noteworthy losers was NTELOS (NTLS), which fell 22% after FBR predicted its deal with Sprint (S) will not be renewed. Also lower were shares of VeriSign (VRSN), down 13% after it announced a revised .com agreement that limits its ability to increase prices... INDICES: Near noon, the Dow was down 13.60, or 0.10%, to 13,008.22; the Nasdaq was down 6.88, or 0.23%, to 3,005.15; and the S&P 500 was down 2.06, or 0.15%, to 1,413.89.

News For ZNGA;FB;YUM;WFM;TLAB;ENZN;FIZZ;RGC;CBK;FIVE;NTLS;S;VRSN From The Last 14 Days

Facebook July weekly volatility increasing into Q2 and outlook Facebook 7/31/15 weekly call option implied volatility is at 60, August is at 40, September is at 34; compared to its 52-week range of 19 to 48, suggesting large near term price movement into the expected release of Q2 results on July 29.

Sell PayPal amid mounting payments competition, Piper saysShares of PayPal (PYPL) advanced over 5% yesterday in the stock's first day of trading following a split from eBay (EBAY), with the majority of research firms issuing optimistic notes on its prospects. This morning, however, analyst Gene Munster of Piper Jaffray recommends selling the share as competition grows in the digital payments space. BEARS: Munster started shares of PayPal with an Underweight rating, the firm's equivalent of a "Sell," saying increased competition could pressure the stock's multiple over the next 6-24 months. Google's (GOOG) Android Pay and Apple's (AAPL) Apple Pay will give consumers a "real alternative to PayPal" for the first time, Munster tells investors in his research note. In addition, interest in payments from Amazon.com (AMZN) and Facebook (FB) bring potential for more digital wallet offerings, the analyst notes. Munster set a $30 price target for PayPal. Of note, Evercore ISI also started coverage of PayPal shares yesterday with a Sell rating. BULLS: Wells Fargo initiated coverage of PayPal yesterday with an Outperform rating, saying the company's unique assets will enable it to maintain its leadership role in digital payments and benefit from the growth of e-commerce. Also upbeat was Robert W. Baird analyst Colin Sebastian, who contends that PayPal has the top pure play online payment system and is continuing to grow its share of the Internet payment market. PayPal should be able to innovate more effectively after its spin-off, added the analyst, who set a $45 price target on the shares. PRICE ACTION: Shares of PayPal are pointing toward further gains in their second day of standalone trading, with the stock up about 2.7% to $41.55 in pre-market trading.

PayPal initiated with an Underweight at Piper JaffrayPiper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster started shares of PayPal (PYPL) with an Underweight rating saying increased competition could pressure the stock's multiple over the next 6-24 months. Underweight is Piper's equivalent of a sell rating. Google's (GOOG) Android Pay and Apple's (AAPL) Apple Pay will give consumers a "real alternative to PayPal" for the first time, Munster tells investors in a research note. In addition, interest in payments from Amazon.com (AMZN) and Facebook (FB) bring potential for more digital wallet offerings, the analyst notes. Munster set a $30 price target for PayPal, which began trading yesterday following a spinoff from parent company eBay (EBAY). Shares of the online payment system closed Monday up $2.08 to $40.47.

Facebook July weekly volatility increasing into Q2 and outlook Facebook 7/31/15 weekly call option implied volatility is at 53, August is at 38, September is at 33; compared to its 52-week range of 19 to 48, suggesting large near term price movement into the expected release of Q2 results on July 29.

Facebook price target raised to $117 at BTIG on video opportunityBTIG analyst Richard Greenfield believes Facebook can exceed consensus estimates, citing higher confidence in the company's video advertising opportunity. Greenfield, who raised his revenue estimates for Facebook in this year and next, also points out Instagram's monetization opportunity and the platform potential of WhatsApp and Messenger. The analyst raised his price target on Facebook to $117 from a "stale" target of $80 that had been set in July of last year and reiterates a Buy rating on the social network's stock, which closed at $94.97 on Friday.

Christopher & Banks responds to recent shareholder inquiryChristopher & Banks Corporation on July 8 received a letter from the Macellum Advisors GP seeking certain of the company’s books and records in connection with transactions in our stock in 2014 by four of our directors. Subsequently, Macellum publicly disclosed that request in connection with a Schedule 13D filing. The company issued the following statement: The company is in the process of complying with the books and records demand pursuant to applicable law. The sales of CBK stock by three of the company’s directors in September 2014 questioned by Macellum were all promptly made following the company’s earnings announcement in September 2014. In each case, the trade was pre-cleared pursuant to the company’s stock trading policy. The fourth director did not sell his shares but rather transferred shares to his former spouse in accordance with the terms of his divorce decree. The company is confident that an objective review of the facts will reflect that there were no violations of law by any of these directors.